From Procrastinate Hero to Procrastinate Zero - .pdf

From Procrastinate Hero to Procrastinate Zero - .pdf

1. Darius Foroux
HOW
TO GO

2. How To Go
From Procrastinate Hero
To Procrastinate Zero
A reliable system for overcoming
procrastination and achieving more
By Darius Foroux

3. INTRODUCTION

4. Do you know that feeling? You have to do something, but
somehow you just don’t do it? That’s procrastination. We all
do it.
And the funny thing is, we often procrastinate tasks that ben-
efit us in the long-term.
For years, I wanted to write a book. But I never started. For
years, I wanted to run every day. But I didn’t. And to be hon-
est, I can go on for a few hours about the stuff I always want-
ed to do, but never did.
I was a true procrastinate hero.
And if you look at the world today, it’s not a surprise most of
us procrastinate.
We’re flooded with information, distractions, opportunities,
etc. All that stuff causes a lack of clarity. There’s just too much
stress on our attention.
And that makes it impossible to get work done.
And if you want to achieve anything in life, there’s only one
thing that can make that happen: WORK.
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5. And that’s stupid, right? Why would you sabotage yourself?
Why would you start things but never finish them? Why
would you not get the most out of life?
Well, I have good news: It’s not your fault.
Well, it is, but it also isn’t. It’s complicated.
It’s not your fault because procrastination is as old as modern
civilization.
Hesiod, a Greek poet who lived in the 8th century B.C., put it
best:
You see? That quote is from centuries ago. Our behavior
hasn’t changed much. It doesn’t take a scientist to observe
that.
We’re so
distracted
with useless
tasks, that
we live truly
unproductive
lives.
“Do not put off your work until tomorrow and the day
after. For the sluggish worker does not fill his barn,
nor the one who puts off his work; industry aids work,
but the man who puts off work always wrestles with
disaster.”
5

6. I’ve written about why we procrastinate, and how the only
solution is to rely on a system. Otherwise, you get disaster,
like Hesiod said.
Therefore, it is your fault because you don’t have a system in
place to beat procrastination.
And a system is nothing more than a vehicle that will bring
you to your goals. It will not do the work for you, but it will
give the structure you need to be consistently productive.
Every day. I call it Procrastinate Zero. And it looks like this:
• Step 1 Brain: Fix your mindset and train your brain.
• Step 2 Body: Improve your health. Without it, you don’t
even have the energy to be productive.
• Step 3 Procrastination: Apply tactics to overcome
procrastination and improve focus.
• Step 4 Productivity: Only when you have improved your
focus, it’s time to improve your hourly output.
• Step 5 Persuasion: It’s great that you are good at what you
do, but without persuasion skills, no one will ever know
about it. Persuasion skills will help you to actually achieve
things.
I HAVE CREATED A SYSTEM
FEEL FREE TO COPY IT
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7. This system only works in that order.
For example, if you start with Step 4, applying productivity
hacks to improve your hourly output, you won’t be successful
in the long-term.
Because, what good are hacks for if you’re always tired, dis-
tracted, and completely lost? Exactly.
Finally, living a productive life only makes sense if you’re able
to get what you want. You can be an awesome person with
great qualities, but if you can’t communicate that to others,
nothing will ever happen in your life.
In this guide, I will give you an example of how you can im-
prove every single step of the Procrastinate Zero framework.
And every step is structured as follows:
• Explanation of why it matters. For example, in Step 1, we
first discuss why a strong mind is essential for achieving
your goals.
• Actionable advice that you can immediately apply to your
life.
• I’ve also added videos to some of the steps in case you like
to get more in-depth information and tools.
1. Brain 2. Body 3. Procrastination 4. Productivity 5. Persuasion
7

8. Doing focused work is a rarity today. And it’s not easy. Other-
wise, everybody would be successful.
The tips and strategies that you will find in this book will make
you more effective.
I’ve not only tested it on myself. It also works for the almost
5,000 people who took some form of my online courses.
Let’s get started.
Technology has made
our lives easier. But
it has also made it
difficult to get things
done. Distractions
are everywhere. And
they keep you from
doing your work.
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9. STEP 1
BRAIN
If you spend too much time
thinking about a thing, you’ll
never get it done.
– Bruce Lee

10. The first step to living a productive life is training your brain.
Without the right mindset and self-awareness, it’s impossible
to do anything in life.
You might want to achieve all kinds of things in life, but what
do you do when your brain doesn’t cooperate?

You know that you’re your own worst enemy, right? But that
doesn’t have to be that way.
You have to learn how to use your brain. Otherwise, your
brain will use you.
Keep An Activity Log To Become More
Effective
I often hear people saying: “I don’t know what’s wrong with
me. I keep procrastinating.”
That’s not a surprise to me. Most people don’t know what
they do with their time, and therefore, their life.
If you don’t know where your time goes, you don’t know
yourself. And if you don’t know yourself, you can never stop
procrastination or improve your productivity.
How do you keep an activity log? Watch this video to learn
how I do it.
This simple exercise will improve the quality of your brain.
Give it a try and get to know yourself better. Understand how
you operate in daily life.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
10

11. To keep the body in good health is a
duty, otherwise we shall not be able
to keep our mind strong and clear.
– Budha
STEP 2
BODY

12. This one is very simple.
You can set goals in your life. You can create systems. You can
even live without goals at all. Maybe you want to be a good
parent. Maybe you want to make enough money to live a
comfortable life.
Great. But here’s the thing: If you don’t have the energy to
make those things happen, nothing will happen.
That’s why Brain + Body are the foundation of Procrastinate
Zero. It’s a strategy for life.
Common sense, right? Look, it’s not rocket science. You just
have to act on your common sense. But most people never do
that. No matter how easy it is. It’s about living a conscious life.
Also, the brain and body support each other. When you
exercise, you produce new blood vessels in your brain. That
makes it easier for your brain to do its job.
Exercise stimulates the production of hormones called brain-
derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). That’s literally a growth
hormone for your brain. BDNF helps your brain to create new
cells, and it improves the connections between your brain’s
neurons.
Get enough sleep, eat healthy food, and
exercise daily
Building a healthy body is not complicated. Why do people
pretend it is? Money. The fitness and health industry is a
billion-dollar industry.
Think about it, have you ever seen a commercial on TV about
getting enough sleep? How about a commercial that says
you should eat healthy if you want to improve your immune
system?
Instead, we see ads for products, supplements, and diets that
promise the same things that sleep, diet and exercise will give
you.
The only difference is that NO ONE makes money when they
say you should get 7–9 hours of sleep.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
12

13. WANT TO GET FIT? DO THESE FIVE THINGS.
We often take the car or public transportation when we could
easily walk. But going from A to B is not the only reason to
walk.
You can also just go for a walk, without any reason but to
get moving. Your lunch break is a perfect time for a walk. It
doesn’t matter how you do it, as long as you commit to daily
walking. Aim for 30 minutes a day.
Do you know how many calories you eat during your
workweek? How many calories do you burn? How many
calories does your body need? Use apps like Myfitnesspal or
step counters to measure measure your daily activity.
Once you start using these apps, you will get a clear picture of
how much you walk and how much you eat on an average day.
It’s easier to do something every day instead of 2–3 times a
week. This is also true for working out. When you create the
habit of going to the gym every day at the same time, you will
act on autopilot after a while.
You can combine this with the Pomodoro method. When
your timer goes off, walk around, or do stretches during your
5-minute break.
1 3
42
Walk as much as you can Track your movements and diet
Create a daily exercise habitMove every 30 minutes
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14. When you are used to going to the gym every day after work
for 45 minutes, you will also plan for it. Try to aim for daily
exercise during the workweek. Weekends are optional.
Doing the same thing every day is boring and also not pro-
ductive. The ideal weekly exercise program has three types of
movement.
So switch things up with these types of exercise:
• Strength — think of weight lifting, rowing, rock climbing or
anything else that requires strength.
• Interval Training — high-intensity interval training improves
your overall condition and your body’s metabolism.
• Mobility — something like yoga or just a good old-fashioned
stretching session.
Finally, make it fun to exercise. Otherwise, it will never last.
Pick out something that you love to do. Challenge yourself to
improve every day.
5
Design an exercise routine that
you enjoy
14

15. A man who procrastinates in his
choosing will inevitably have his
choice made for him by circumstance.
– Hunter S. Thompson
STEP 3
PROCRASTINATION

16. Once you’re in good shape, mentally and physically, it’s time
to improve your focus and get rid of distractions.
Modern life is pretty rich. You literally have the world at your
fingertips. You can:
• Read any book you want.
• Send a message to anyone you know.
• Listen to your favorite artist.
• Watch funny cat videos.
All of these things are nice and all. But there’s one problem:
Every time you do something without purpose, you‘re
distracted. And willpower can’t help you to stop doing these
things.
We all know how it feels. One minute you’re opening
Facebook and the other minute you’re in bed, crying, with an
empty bag of potato chips on your lap.
We procrastinate when we don’t know what to do. Or when
we’re afraid. But when we know exactly what we have to do,
we do it. Right?
That’s why most of us are good at working with deadlines or
doing work when someone asks us to do it. But when it comes
to our personal life, those aspects are lacking.
“We have seas of time. There’s always tomorrow.”
Nope. That’s not true. One day you will die. Don’t pretend
you’re immortal.
Create A Morning Ritual
A morning ritual is important because it sets the tone of your
day. It really improves your focus because you take time to
think about what you’re going to do.
When you have a good morning ritual, you improve your
focus, and that will help you to get more things done
throughout the day. And by the end of it, you will feel like you
accomplished something. Watch the video below to learn how
I do it.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
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17. Productivity is being able to
do things that you were never
able to do before.
– Franz Kafka
STEP 4
PRODUCTIVITY

18. Productivity is about effectiveness.
Answering 100 emails per hour is not productivity. That’s
efficiency. And most of us still don’t see the difference.
Productivity doesn’t necessarily mean that you get the right
things done. You might be super busy. But where is your life,
career, business going?
That’s more important. It’s about results.
You might work for 50 hours a week, but if you don’t
experience any growth personally, emotionally, financially,
you’re not being productive at all.
Work In Uninterrupted Intervals
Focusing on a single task is the most powerful productivity tip
there is. But there’s one problem: We’re always interrupted by
something. That’s why can’t focus!
How can we overcome that? Research shows that working in
intervals can help. It’s also known as the Pomodoro method.
It sounds simple. But it took me more than a decade to master
this technique.
In the video below, I explain the keys to improving your focus
by using the Pomodoro method:
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
The PZ definition of productivity is:
Getting the right things done in the
least amount of time.
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19. To be persuasive we must be believable;
to be believable we must be creditable;
to be credible we must be truthful.
– Edward R. Murrow
STEP 5
PERSUASION

20. People play a big role in our lives. But have you ever attended
a class on how to effectively communicate with others?

It’s not common to teach people about people. We just
assume that we know everything. Because we‘re people,
right?
Wrong.

Understanding people is way more difficult than it seems, and
it is impossible to fully understand people.

However, if we want to get anywhere in life, we have to
understand the basics of how to communicate with people.
One of the best books about this subject is How To Win
Friends And Influence People by Dale Carnegie. That
book was written in 1937 but it’s timeless. And I think it’s
mandatory reading for every human being.
Here are few things I’ve learned from that book:
• Don’t blatantly criticize or condemn people.
• Give honest appreciation.
• Think about what the other person wants and combine that
with your own desire.
What are some good characteristics of people? What traits do
other people like about us?
• Interest: Be genuinely interested in people.
• Positive mindset: Smile, make people feel good, be merry.
• Listening: Don’t interrupt people.
• Appreciation: Treat people like you want to be treated.
Also, influence is not something evil. Influence is nothing more
than communicating your message to the right people, in the
right way.
Let me be clear that you can’t, under any circumstance,
actually influence people like a magician. We don’t live in a
fairytale world.
It’s not like you study the science of influence and all of a
sudden you become an evil millionaire who controls the world.

No matter how many times you read Influence by Robert
Cialdini, if you’re an idiot, you will remain an idiot.
Just be transparent in what you do and why you do it. But at
the same time understand how you should get your product,
yourself, or your services out there.
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21. Start Your Email Subject Lines With
“Your”
Did you know that 200 billion emails are sent daily? That’s
crazy. What’s even more crazy: 55% of all people don’t open
emails regularly.
It happens to all of us. We send an email, wait for a response…
But nothing happens.
Through more than 10 years of experience in sales, I’ve
learned one simple tactic that massively improved the
response rates of my emails.
Always start your subject line with “Your.”
• That’s the #1 tip that will improve your emails. I use it all
the time. The reason is that people love themselves and
when you send an email about them, they feel an urge to
open it.
• If you’re emailing to ask someone for feedback you can say:
“Your feedback on X.”
• If you want to make an appointment to talk about
someone’s company: “Your company’s exponential growth.”
• Want to ask your friend to give you a ride? Say: “Your
awesome car.”
• Don’t talk about yourself, even though you’re emailing
someone because you want something. So always make the
subject about them.
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
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22. Here are two other tips to improve
your email response rate.
• People are less likely to respond to long emails.
• As a rule of thumb, always delete your first sentence. It’s
probably something like this: “How are you? I hope every-
thing is well.” Just say why you’re emailing.
There you go. You can apply this to everything: emailing
friends, selling stuff, asking for informational interviews. Send
emails with these tips, sit back, and watch people respond to
your emails.
• Don’t use open-ended questions like: “Let me know what
you think.” If I ask you that, what would you say? Nothing,
right? Or “How is your schedule?” That’s also terrible.
• You want to minimize the email thread. Want to meet
someone? Propose two dates and let them pick. Want feed-
back? Ask a specific question.
• The last thing you want is to send 20 emails to clear up
something or to make an appointment.
1 2Keep it short and cut the chit chatHave a clear Call To Action
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23. CONCLUSION

24. I’m often asked, “why productivity?”
I believe that a productive life equals a useful life. And that a
useful life equals a happy life.
And because we have limited time, I prefer to optimize the
way I function as a human being.
Life is pretty long. Just think about it. Let’s say that you retire
at 65. And if you’re lucky, you might live until your eighties.
That’s a long time.

But there’s one condition. Don’t waste your time now.
Because the decisions you make today determine the
outcome of your life in the future.
That doesn’t mean you should live in the future. No, it means
you have to be a realist.
If you hate your job, and don’t have the courage to quit, you
become a cynical person. That destroys your relationships.
And ultimately, you might end up alone. And studies show
that lonely people die earlier than people who are surrounded
by others.
You see? You might think that what you do today doesn’t
affect your life in 10, 20, or maybe even 50 years from now.
But it does.
As the Stoic philosopher Seneca once said:
Life is only short if you waste it.
Bleh, bleh, bleh.
We’ve heard it a million times.
That’s why we need systems and strategies in our life that
help us to execute on the things we know.
We don’t do the things we know.
Change that. Change your life.
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“It is not that we have so little time but that we lose
so much. The life we receive is not short but we make
it so; we are not ill provided but use what we have
wastefully.”
But here comes the essence of this guide, and one of the
main messages I communicate in Procrastinate Zero:
Common sense is not common action.

25. THANK YOU FOR READING
I hope you found this little book useful. Let me know about the results that
you’re achieving. And if you have questions/feedback/remarks, you can al-
ways send me an email.
If you’re subscribed to my newsletter, you can hit reply on any one of my
emails. You can also email me directly on [email protected].
Best,
Darius